Warning! Geico is NOT fulltime insurance in Texas

[Rice]

I just spent an hour on the phone getting a quote for fulltimer's insurance from Geico. When the agent first answered the phone and I said I wanted fulltimer RV insurance, he said I'd come to the right place, that they specialize in fulltimer coverage. Great!

After I gave him all my information (including my mailing and garaging addresses in Texas) and he gave me the quote, he tried to get me to sign up and pay for the policy right then, but I asked him to send me a quote instead, and specified that I wanted it broken down into the various elements instead of just a total amount.

He did so, and in examining it carefully, I noticed there wasn't a premium for fulltimer coverage, so I called back. I said I had a question about my fulltime RV policy quote, and the agent said he could certainly help me with that because Geico specializes in fulltimer policies, and there are one of only a few companies that do.

So I asked him about the missing fulltimer liability coverage premium from my fulltimer coverage quote, and he said it wasn't available in Texas. I said, "What?" He said Geico doesn't offer the liability portion that I was referring to. I said, "Then how is this a fulltimer policy?" He said it's written for using the RV 365 days a year and covers my personal effects, so it's a fulltimer policy.

I replied that the liability portion is an integral part of fulltimer coverage, and he said Texas is the one state where Geico doesn't offer it. So I said it's not a fulltimer policy if it doesn't provide the liability coverage that other people get via a homeowner's policy. He repeated that it is a fulltimer policy because it provides coverage for 365 days a year and covers personal effects.

I asked if there was some other type of coverage that would substitute for the liability portion that a homeowner's policy would provide, and he put me on hold for a minute, and came back and said no, there's nothing they offer that will be the equivalent of the liability portion of a homeowner's policy. Now would I like to pay for my premium in full or in installments?

I'm not often speechless, but that one got me.

So...WARNING! GEICO DOES NOT OFFER REAL FULLTIMER'S COVERAGE IN TEXAS.

And worse, they will happily let you pay for a policy without telling you that, and the ONLY way you'll know it is if you (1) get an itemization, and (2) scrutinize it enough to notice that there's not a premium listed for fulltimer's coverage and call and ask about it.

They should be ashamed of themselves. They knew my mailing address is in Texas, and my garaging address is in Texas, and even when I told them the policy didn't include essential coverage for a fulltimer, the agent still tried to get me to pay for it.

[Rice]

On the section of their website about RV insurance, they don't talk about fulltimers at all (despite being self-proclaimed specialists), but they do mention "vacation liability":

Vacation Liability – pays for Bodily Injury and Property Damage losses that occur at your vacation site. $10,000 of Vacation Liability coverage is automatically included at no additional cost with Comprehensive and Collision coverage.

So they do understand the concept. However, the $10,000 limit pales in comparison to what my fulltimer liability coverage is--$250,000 per person and $500,000 per accident.

I'd like to hear from anyone who has fulltimer insurance with Geico, to see if the fulltimer liability is on their policy.

[lbrjet]

They don't say a word about liability in their RV coverages section on their website, that is why I am asking. Sounds like you did not have a very knowledgeable sales person.

[Rice]

lbrjet wrote:
I think you are wrong about Geico offering full timers liability insurance in other states. How did you come to the conclusion it is offered anywhere?

When I asked why I didn't see a premium for fulltimer liability, the Geico rep said it wasn't available in Texas. I expressed shock and questioned him about it, and he added that Texas is the only state where they don't offer it.

But now I wonder. I thought they were deceptive and pushy, but if what he told me about this isn't true, then that's just a lie. A lie I'll be blamed for around here, I'm sure. :R

Do you know of other states where they don't offer fulltimer liability?

[lbrjet]

I think you are wrong about Geico offering full timers liability insurance in other states. How did you come to the conclusion it is offered anywhere?

[fulltimedaniel]

Rice wrote:

CarnationSailor wrote:

Fulltimer50 wrote:
Rice,
Why not just go with another company that does offer what you want?

Well, I'm sure the OP will do just that, but I, for one, thank him for posting the warning.

Of course I will go with another company.

CarnationSailor, you're welcome. That was the point of my post--to warn people about this issue, so they don't make a mistake. I wish someone had done that before, so I wouldn't have wasted my time.

DownTheAvenue wrote:
This just proves that insurance, like any consumer product, requires the purchaser to read and understand what he is buying, not just taking a salesperson's word for it. I always amased that people spend more time studying the sports page of the paper than researching before purchasing a big ticket item.

It's just not that easy. Half the people are of below average intelligence, and it's unreasonable to expect them to read an insurance policy, and it's insane to expect them to understand it. Hell, I made an honor grade in Insurance Law in law school, and my eyes glaze over when I try to read insurance policies. Plus, I have yet to ever see an actual policy before actually signing up.

The only reason I noticed the Geico issue was because I have a spreadsheet where I've put the premium breakdowns for policies and quotes for the last 10 years, so I can compare them. That's how I noticed there wasn't a number for fulltimer liability. Agents always give quotes as just a total, and the breakdown comes only if you ask for it, and what they provide doesn't have blank cells to notice.

So I don't fault the consumer. The fault here is all on Geico.

This thread is a good example of "blame the OP" mentality that is rife on this site.

Gieco is definitely cutting corners on the idea of informed consent in this case. Consumers deserve simply written in plain language contracts that affect them. Many companies now do this. I have avoided GIECO for other reasons...they are just too expensive for the same coverage I can get elsewhere.

The OP was right to put out the warning and he deserves our thanks.

[Fulltimer50]

Google says:

[Walaby]

Thanks... I've been meaning to make an appt with my insurance agent. I need to get classic car insurance, and I get everything through one company, so I will ask them to make sure how the homeowners works. I just honestly never even thought about the potential liability until I read this thread.

Believe you are correct about umbrella liability policy.. Just ups what you already have.

Mike

[Rice]

Walaby wrote:
So are you saying that my homeowners insurance will cover my liability while Im out 'part timing' in my RV? I honestly had not thought about it.

That's my understanding, but I'm not a part-time RVer with homeowner's insurance so I haven't looked into it other than to read other people's discussions.

The impression I have is that homeowners insurance covers all sorts of stuff that you wouldn't think it would.

Walaby wrote:
I thought I needed some sort of umbrella liability policy that cover 'stuff' other than my regular automotive policy and homeowners... I get that if someone has an accident at my house they are covered, but I hadn't thought to double check to see if it covers me when Im in my home away from home.

I'm obviously no insurance expert (but I'm learning fast, thanks to Geico), but when people talk about fulltimer liability, it's always in terms of a substitute for the coverage that other people in RVs have through their homeowner's insurance.

I'm not sure there is such a thing as an "umbrella liability policy," if you mean a policy that provides just liability coverage.

My understanding is that umbrella policies increase your coverage limits, but aren't stand-alone insurance. In fact, they generally require you to have certain levels of coverage in place before they'll issue an umbrella policy. They just up the coverage you otherwise have.

What I don't really understand about umbrella policies is how they really protect your assets. The typical number thrown around is $1 million. So your coverage is increased to $1 million of insurance instead of $250,000, for example. But if someone sues you for $3 million, you're exposed to the tune of $2 million even with your umbrella policy.

I just don't see what's so magic about the $1 million number.

[Walaby]

Rice

So are you saying that my homeowners insurance will cover my liability while Im out 'part timing' in my RV? I honestly had not thought about it. I thought I needed some sort of umbrella liability policy that cover 'stuff' other than my regular automotive policy and homeowners... I get that if someone has an accident at my house they are covered, but I hadn't thought to double check to see if it covers me when Im in my home away from home.

Mike

[Rice]

lbrjet wrote:
Next time you talk with an insurance saleman lead with asking about liability and don't assume everyone else has the same definition of a fulltimers policy as you do. This was a simple miscommunication problem, not a Geico problem.

Two things make it a Geico problem. First, they offer fulltimer liability in 49 states, so they obviously think it's something people want/need. I told them I wanted Texas fulltimer insurance, and they didn't say, "Just so you know, our 'fulltimer' insurance in Texas is different from our 'fulltimer' insurance in 49 other states." There is clearly a difference between what they offer in Texas and what they offer in the other 49 states, but they call it the same thing, and they don't tell people affected that there's a difference. That's deceptive.

Second, when I said I didn't want a policy if it didn't include fulltimer liability, the response was, "Would you like to pay in full or in installments?" Definitely no miscommunication there: Geico will sell you what they have, and if you say it's not what you want, they'll ask you how you want to pay for it.

Fulltimer50 wrote:
Ok. So what exactly IS fulltimers coverage? I suspect it is somewhat like: what are full hookups?

I would think the definition is what the vast majority of people think it is. In the case of full hookups, that would be electric, water and sewer. There are a few people who think it should include cable, but they are a tiny minority.

In Geico's case, the coverage they offer in 98% of the states includes fulltimer liability--I think that would be a good starting point for a definition.

Walaby wrote:
So what protects us less than full timers from someone doing something like this? Nothing I reckon, unless I too buy liability insurance, even if not full time?

Your homeowners or renters insurance includes the sort of liability coverage we're talking about. Since fulltime RVers don't have homeowners or renters insurance, they have to get liability coverage some other way.

The obvious way is to equate a fulltimer's RV with a homeowner's house or a renter's apartment--insuring the abode includes liability coverage. In fact, in all the years I've been buying fulltimer insurance, I've never heard of a policy that didn't automatically include liability, just like homeowners and renters insurance.

So you don't have to buy any additional insurance if you have homeowners or renters insurance.

What I can't figure out is why Geico doesn't offer it in Texas. Every other company I've ever used or gotten a quote from includes it, so it's obviously possible. And Geico includes it in every state but Texas. Why?

[Walaby]

KPetrick wrote:
Think of someone tripping and falling into your fire pit or exiting your RV and missing a step.

So what protects us less than full timers from someone doing something like this? Nothing I reckon, unless I too buy liability insurance, even if not full time?

Lord, what a shame we have to buy 77 different types of insurance to keep from being sued by someone about something.

Mike

[Fulltimer50]

lbrjet wrote:
Next time you talk with an insurance saleman lead with asking about liability and don't assume everyone else has the same definition of a fulltimers policy as you do. This was a simple miscommunication problem, not a Geico problem.

There ya go. 🙂

[KPetrick]

When you own a home and have insurance on the home it generally includes liability coverage that covers you when someone gets injured in/on your property. Since you don't own a home and full time out of an RV you need that same type of coverage to protect you. Full timer liability does that. It covers you for claims from people that are injured while on, in or around your RV. Think of someone tripping and falling into your fire pit or exiting your RV and missing a step.

[lbrjet]

Next time you talk with an insurance saleman lead with asking about liability and don't assume everyone else has the same definition of a fulltimers policy as you do. This was a simple miscommunication problem, not a Geico problem.